Trimix Deep Dive Prerequisite

[Tigerpaw]

They are all good courses, but I would change the order. Fundies is an introductory course, not an advanced level course. Take it first.

And to everyone else that agreed,......from what I've read about the GUE Fundamentals class it is difficult to even get a rec pass. I've read that Divemasters, cave divers and instructors have had issues. I thought the other courses would prepare me to GUE Fundies. Is everyone saying the opposite is true, take GUE funnies first??? Is my logic flawed? Seriously though, with this being the beginning of the year, this is the best time to find out.

 

[SpeedyJ]

And to everyone else that agreed,......from what I've read about the GUE Fundamentals class it is difficult to even get a rec pass. I've read that Divemasters, cave divers and instructors have had issues. I thought the other courses would prepare me to GUE Fundies. Is everyone saying the opposite is true, take GUE funnies first??? Is my logic flawed? Seriously though, with this being the beginning of the year, this is the best time to find out.

Are you taking Fundies to get a pass and progress on with GUE training, or are you taking it to learn? Its a more difficult course for people coming in with lots of training because there are lots of ingrained habits that have to be broken and rewritten. Too many people approach it purely from an evaluation standpoint, vs. focusing on what will be learned, even without a "Tech Pass."

 

[Lorenzoid]

And to everyone else that agreed,......from what I've read about the GUE Fundamentals class it is difficult to even get a rec pass. I've read that Divemasters, cave divers and instructors have had issues. I thought the other courses would prepare me to GUE Fundies. Is everyone saying the opposite is true, take GUE funnies first??? Is my logic flawed? Seriously though, with this being the beginning of the year, this is the best time to find out.

Take Fundies first. Even if you decide to continue on a non-GUE path for further training, the Fundies foundation will serve you well.

 

[Tracy]

And to everyone else that agreed,......from what I've read about the GUE Fundamentals class it is difficult to even get a rec pass. I've read that Divemasters, cave divers and instructors have had issues. I thought the other courses would prepare me to GUE Fundies. Is everyone saying the opposite is true, take GUE funnies first??? Is my logic flawed? Seriously though, with this being the beginning of the year, this is the best time to find out.

Just because people struggle with it doesn't mean they didn't learn a lot from it. It is still an introductory course that will make the rest of your courses much easier pass or fail.

 

[Tigerpaw]

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[Tigerpaw]

Thanks everyone for steering me in the right direction. Ever since I heard about GUE Fundamentals I was wanting to take it but I had the misconception that I needed to take it last. @SpeedyJ comment about having to break bad habits reinforced the fact it's better to take it earlier so that when I'm in the other tech classes I'll be using proper technique. After Fundies, I don't plan on taking any other GUE courses.

I was planning to head to the lake and start sidemount training/practice dives solo but I think I may have a GUE instructor tag along with me for my first few dives to ensure I am training properly.

So first I'm going to do sidemount practice dives followed up by GUE Fundies. After I am finished with GUE Fundies, I'll take TDI ANDP and do a bunch of practice dives afterwards. Finally I'll conclude with TDI ER/Trimex. I'm thinking about just taking my time and maybe taking the whole year to complete but I'll see where I'm at. Thanks again for the advice, any additional comments are welcomed!

 

[Tracy]

Thanks everyone for steering me in the right direction. Ever since I heard about GUE Fundamentals I was wanting to take it but I had the misconception that I needed to take it last. @SpeedyJ comment about having to break bad habits reinforced the fact it's better to take it earlier so that when I'm in the other tech classes I'll be using proper technique. After Fundies, I don't plan on taking any other GUE courses.

I was planning to head to the lake and start sidemount training/practice dives solo but I think I may have a GUE instructor tag along with me for my first few dives to ensure I am training properly.

So first I'm going to do sidemount practice dives followed up by GUE Fundies. After I am finished with GUE Fundies, I'll take TDI ANDP and do a bunch of practice dives afterwards. Finally I'll conclude with TDI ER/Trimex. I'm thinking about just taking my time and maybe taking the whole year to complete but I'll see where I'm at. Thanks again for the advice, any additional comments are welcomed!

No comment or criticism, just curious why you are wanting to pursue sidemount over backmount. Both work, but if your plan is fundies, you would be limited to backmount whether it be in a single or double tank configuration.

 

[inquis]

Since Fundies will be backmount, the sidemount practice should probably take a back seat, temporarily. I say do Fundies (rec pass) on a single tank; learn the trim, awareness, ascent discipline, communication, and various other advantages it will convey. Then switch back to sidemount since that seems to be your end game. Ideally, you would do Fundies in a dry suit, as your future tech diving will benefit from such redundant buoyancy.

 

[Tigerpaw]

No comment or criticism, just curious why you are wanting to pursue sidemount over backmount. Both work, but if your plan is fundies, you would be limited to backmount whether it be in a single or double tank configuration.

I have limited mobility and flexibility in my shoulders, I have a hard time reaching the valves. Sidemount is bulky but everything is easily within reach. Based on the replies I'm getting; I will be doing fundies in single backmount.

 

[Tigerpaw]

Since Fundies will be backmount, the sidemount practice should probably take a back seat, temporarily. I say do Fundies (rec pass) on a single tank; learn the trim, awareness, ascent discipline, communication, and various other advantages it will convey. Then switch back to sidemount since that seems to be your end game. Ideally, you would do Fundies in a dry suit, as your future tech diving will benefit from such redundant buoyancy.

THANKS!!! You saved me a lot of time. I'm so glad I posted as I was going way out of order but I think I have everything planned out correctly now.
OK so let's try this again, my Scuba New Year training plan:

- Practice diving wing setup (20-30 dives)
- Take GUE Fundies
- After rec pass, dive SM setup (20-30 dives)
- Take ANDP
- Dive/practice techniques taught in ANDP (20-30 dives)
- Take Trimix